Cotton picking spindle with resiliently supported barbs



R. L. LA RUE April 29, 1955s COTTON PICKING SPINDLE WITH RESILIENTLY SUPPORTED BARBS Filed April '7, 1955 INVENTOR.

rates f are Kdflfifidb Patented Apr. 2%), i958 CUTTUN PECKENG SPlNDlLE WITH RESILIENTLY SUPPGRTED BARBS Richard Landon La Rue, Corpus Christi, Tex.

Application April 7, 1955, Serial No. 499,776

6 Claims. (CI. 56-50) This invention relates to improvements in cotton picking spindles and more particularly to improved cotton picking spindles for machines in which a bank or rack of rotating spindles travels through the cotton field.

In this general type of cotton picking machine, a plurality of rotating spindles are mounted in a plurality of slats and as each spindle rotates it winds up about its surface successive cotton fibers until finally a considerable mass or ball of cotton has been picked from the plants onto each spindle. The mass of fibrous material is rernoved from the spindles by strippers which are impelled longitudinally of the spindles toward their free ends, the strippers being kept as close in contact with the surface the spindles as possible during the stripping operation so as to strip the cotton completely from the spindle.

Cotton picking spindles which are normally used in commercial machines of this type often have ilutings in the operating shaft thereof. Generally, however, such spindles require water in order to pick up the fibers as the spindle is rotated. There is considerable slippage and loss of fibers when that type of spindle is used. Other suggestions have been made for providing points or barbs extending from hollow spindles internally provided with barb retraction mechanism, but these structures have sometimes been subject to the drawback that fibrous material, dust, dirt, and other foreign matter enter the shaft of the spindle and interfere with or clog the internal mechanism of the spindle. One deleterious result of this clogging is that the points or barbs or needles become fixed and are not retractable to release the ball of cotton fibers when the stripper passes along the spindle. in these instances the stripper simply rides over the projections of the needles and does not effectively clean the spindle.

In the present invention the spindle comprises a hollow shaft having one or more openings in the wall thereof and a resilient body, such as rubber or synthetic rubber within said shaft. Radial extensions, such as liutings or picking barbs or needles, project from the resilient body and extend through the opening or slit in the shaft to provide protruding barbs or catches to engage the fibers the spindle is rotated. The radial extensions are anchored in, or may be integral with, the resilient body in such manner as to permit the ends or points thereof to be tracted flush with or beneath the cylindrical surface of the hollow spindle. The barbs extend radially from the shaft and are preferably hooked or bent at their ends in order to present a point portion which extends preferably somewhat obliquely with respect to the radius of the spindle shaft. The obliquity of a particular barb is preferably arranged so that it points in the direction of rotation of the particular spindle. In some machines, the spindles are mounted in rows in slats, the directions of rotation of the respective members of adjacent being opposite from each other.

The rubber or resilient core Within the spindle shaft may be made of any suitable rubbery or rubber-like,

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elastic or resilient material and preferably is in tubular form having an external diameter slightly greater than the internal diameter of the shaft when the resilient body is in relaxed or unstressed position. Other configurations of the resilient material may be used commensurate With the objective of providing a resilient retractably mounted series of radial projections extending through the thicl ness of the shaft wall.

While certain present preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawing, it is to be understood that other embodiments of the invention may be readily suggested within the scope of this disclosure.

Referring to the figures in the drawing,

Figure l is an elevation View of an assembled spindle according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is an elevation View, taken at right angles with respect to the view in Figure l of a. resilient core body with inserted or attached barbs;

Figure 3 is an enlarged transverse cross section taken along the section line 33 of Figure 1 showing the shaft containing a resilient core body and an inserted barb;

Figure 4 is an enlarged longitudinal cross section taken along the section line l-l of Figure 1 showing shaft, resilient core, and a pair of barbs one of which is in the process of retraction by a stripper;

Figure 5 is an enlarged transverse cross-section of the type shown in Figure 3, showing an alternative structure of the shaft containing a resilient core body and an alternative anchoring means for the inserted barb;

Figure 6 is an enlarged transverse cross-section of the type shown in Figure 3, showing an alternative structure of the shaft containing a resilient core body and a further alternative anchoring means for the inserted barb;

Figure 7 is an enlarged transverse cross-section of the type shown in Figure 3, showing an alternative structure of the shaft containing a resilient core body and a still further alternative anchoring means for the inserted barb;

Figure 8 is an enlarged longitudinal cross section similar to Figure 4 of a portion of a spindle, showing one barb in position and another barb retracted by the stripper;

Figure 9 is an enlarged transverse cross-section of the type shown in Figure 3, showing an alternative structure of the shaft containing a resilient core body and a still further alternative anchoring means for the inserted barb;

Figure 10A is a side elevation of a resilient core having fluting strips extending radially;

Figure 103 is a side elevation of a core similar to, but taken at from, Figure 10A;

Figure is an end View of the core of Figure 10A; and

Figure lllD is an end view of the core of Figure 1013.

Referring to Figure l the cotton picking spindle comprises a hollow shaft ill having a drive roller 12 near one end in the usual position. In the operating end of the shaft ill is a slot 13. Within the shaft is a rubber core id preferably of cylindrical contour. Barbs 15, 16, f7, 13 and 19 are anchored in the resilient core 14 as shown in Figure 2 and in detail in the cross section of Figure 3. The barbs project through the slot 13 in the wall of the shaft so as to form picking barbs extending from the surface of the cylindrical shaft. The tip of the barb Z1, as seen in Figure 3, is bent so as to present a picking point which is oblique with respect to the radius of the shaft.

The core id is easily removed from the shaft 11, as by inserting a sharp pointed tool into the rubber core at the point 2-2 in Figure l between the outermost barb l9 and the end of the core adjacent thereto. The core 14 is preferably slightly larger in external diameter than the internal diameter of the shaft ill. Thus, when the core is pulled at point 22, the resilient material of the core which is somewhat tightly packed within the shaft will stretch longitudinally. This longitudinal stretch has the effect of lessening the diameter, which releases the radial frictional pressure of the external core surface against the internal walls of the shaft. Thus, when the core is pulled at point 22, the barb and core assembly may be easily slipped out the open end of the shaft and thus removed. Assembly and disassembly are thus easily accomplished, resulting in savings of manufacture and cost and provid ing an internal construction in which the barbs are re siliently mounted so that their ends may be depressed through the slot flush with the outer surface of the shaft. The innermost end 23 of the resilient core preferably extends further into the shaft than the end 24 of the slot, thereby providing an effective seal against entry of moisture of fibrous material into the hollow shaft from the slot. The actual linear distance between the two ends 23 and 25 of the resilient core shown in Figure l is slightly greater than the distance between those ends in the unconfined resilient core in Figure 2 after removal from the shaft: and the diameter is accordingly slightly enlarged when the core is removed and no longer under tension or compression.

The barbs may be attached to or anchored within the core in several ways. As shown in Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4, the barb comprises a sharp tip 221 bent at an obtuse angle, a central shank 26 extending through the resilient core and an inner end 27 bent at 26 which acts as an anchor to keep the barb from being pulled out of the core. As may be seen in Figure 4, when a stripping bar 23 travels in the direction of the arrow, the entire barb 19 is displaced longitudinally so that the tip 2i is retracted into the slot 13 and embedded in the core without touching the adjacent barb, thereby permitting the fibrous material to be stripped from the shaft lit and released from each of the barbs. The rubber or other resilient material id is thus deformed temporarily and placed under stress around the depressed barb 19, but after the stripping bar 28 has passed the barb snaps back into the position of it i as shown in Figure 4 due to the tendency of the resilient core to return to its relatively unstressed state.

The barb shown in Figure 6 has a point 31 and a shank 32 terminating in a hook 33 centrally disposed within a resilient core 34 inside a shaft 35. Thus, when a stripping barb 36 travels in the direction of the arrow as shown in Figure 8, the hook end 33 of the barb may physically be depressed inwardly within the shaft toward the shaft wall opposite the slot 37 as the point 31 is depressed into the slot 37. With this type of arrangement, the barb, during the stripping operation, may rotate upon its own axis in the direction of the slot to a lesser degree than the barb 19 shown in Figure 4, since there is room for radial displacement of the barb within the shaft. The hook 33 as shown in Figure 6 may be embedded completely within the core 34, for example, by molding the rubber body in and around it as indicated in the drawing, or it may be otherwise mounted within the core, as by providing a thick hollow rubber tubing to comprise the core, and inserting the shank and point of the barbs through the wall of the rubber tubing. As shown. in Figure 5, the point d3. of the barb extends through the slot 42 in the shut" The shank 4d of the barb extends through the rubber core 45 and terminates short of the inner wall of the shaft 43 in a bifurcated anchor portion 46. In the embodiment shown in Figure 5, as the point 4t is depressed by the stripper barb, the shaft of the barb may be forced radially into the interior of the shaft in the manner generally shown in Figure 8.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 7, the shaft has a point 52 and an internal anchor section comprising a split base end having one tab 53 extending in one direction and the other tab d4 bent back in the opposite direction. All these barbs may be made of sheet metal, but

Cir

Figures 10B and 10D.

as may be seen from the drawing, the barb of Figure 7 is more economically manufactured than that of Figure 5. Also, special molding operations for inserting the barbs into the core, which are required in the structure of Figure 5, are eliminated by the structure of Figure 7. In manufacturing the barb and core assemblies of Figure 7, it is simply necessary'to provide pointed elongated flat sheet metal barbs, centrally longitudinally slit the base end of each barb, bend the two tabs formed by the slit in opposite directions, and insert the barbs through the core. Pro-perforating the core facilitates the assembly of the barb therein. The pointed end of each barb is slightly bent to provide a hook extending in the intended direction of rotation of the spindle into which the set of barbs is to be inserted.

The internal construction shown in Figure 9 illustrates a short shank of on the barb provided with a point 62. The anchor portion 63 is shaped in general conformity with the inner surface of the shaft 64 and preferably comprises a greater than semi-circular contour and terminates at a space 65.

It is to be understood that the radial projections or radial extensions may be integral with the central resilient core, if desired. Thus, the barbs or flutings may have the configurations such as shown in Figures 10A, 10B, 10C and 10D. in these embodiments, a longitudinal cylindrical core 61 or 56 of resilient material is provided at each end with a slight taper to facilitate the introduction and removal of the core into the hollow shaft. A series of long edged barbs or flutes 62 or is interrupted by grooves 63 formed by adjoining oblique flattened edges 64. The flutings 62 are rectangular in cross-section as shown in Figures 10A and 10C. If desired the flutings may be triangular, as shown at 65 in Thus, a pair of relatively sharp right angled edges project from the body of the core 61, whereas in the core 66 a single short acute angled edge at the apex of the triangular cross-section comprises the edge of the operating projection. It is to be understood that radially extending barbs in accordance with the present invention may comprise either the long edged flutings shown in Figure 10 or the single pointed needle-like pro jections shown in Figures 1 and 2.

While I have shown and described certain preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied within the spirit thereof and that the scope of protection is to be measured by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A picking spindle comprising a hollow shaft having a wall, said wall having a longitudinal opening therein, a resilient body substantially filling said shaft adjacent to said opening, and a picking barb anchored to said I resilient body and extending through said opening.

2. A picking spindle having a hollow shaft having a wall, said wall having at least one opening therein, a rubbery core, and a plurality of picking barbs resiliently mounted in said rubbery core within said shaft, said barbs extending through the opening in the wall of said shaft.

3. A picking spindle having a hollow shaft having a wall, said wall having at least one opening therein, a body of resilient rubbery material in said shaft, and a plurality of picking barbs anchored independently of each other in said body and extending through said wall.

4. A picking spindle comprising a shaft having a wall, said wall having at least one opening therein, a body of resilient material in said shaft, and a plurality of barbs extending radially through said wall of the shaft, each of said barbs being resiliently anchored in said body and having a point normally outside said shaft and movable into said shaft through said opening.

5. A picking spindle comprising a hollow shaft having a well, said wall having an opening therein, a resilient core of rubber-like material in said shaft, and a plurality of radially extending barbs embedded in said resilient core and extending through the opening in the wall of said shaft.

6. A picking spindle comprising a hollow shaft having a longitudinal slot and a core of resilient rubbery material having in unstressed condition a transverse crosssectional area slightly larger than the transverse internal cross-sectional area of said shaft, and a barb embedded in said core and extending through said slot. 10

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 497,462 Todd May 16, 1893 15 6 Guidon Oct. 1, 190 Lacey May 6, 1902 Dunn Jan. 19, 1904 Hoff July 11, 1922 Meyer Dec. 30, 1924 Mullen July 23, 1935 Deem Mar. 16, 1937 Heineke et a1 Aug. 19, 1941 Wilensky Apr. 14, 1952 Cohen May 12, 1953 

